As we have detailed already, guard Josh Christopher was undoubtedly one of the Miami Heat’s best players throughout Summer League.
He averaged 16.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.8 steals in eight combined Summer League games, winning Summer League Finals MVP after the Heat’s two-point overtime win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Christopher was so good, in fact, that he was able to secure a two-way spot over guard Zyon Pullin, an undrafted signee who the Heat rewarded a two-way do immediately following the 2024 NBA Draft.
While it’s fair to assume that Christopher, 22, spends the majority of time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce (Heat G-League affiliate), he’s still got a plethora of talent that Miami’s developmental staff can tap into.
An anonymous NBA scout recently offered his two cents to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald regarding Christopher and his prospects with the Heat:
“He’s a very good athlete and has three-point range; that gives him a chance,” the scout said. “He wasn’t very good for Houston. His feel for the game is very limited. He hasn’t been efficient as an NBA player.
“Maybe he revives his career. He can score. He’s still young. He’s got NBA talent. You don’t write him off. If he’s going to play in the NBA, he’s going to have a much more limited role [than the shoot-first starring role in summer league]. Can he make threes at a reasonable rate and play within himself and not think he’s a star? He needs to be an off-ball guy.
“He needs to accept he’s a 3 and D guy. If there’s any role for him, it’s that.”
Christopher, a former first-round pick by the Houston Rockets in the 2021 NBA Draft (No. 21 overall), joined the Heat organization in mid-January after getting waived by the Utah Jazz. He played in 18 regular season games with the Skyforce, averaging 15.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists on 44.3 percent shooting, 32.7 percent from 3-point range and 90.5 percent from the free-throw line.
The former first-rounder didn’t quite find his footing with Houston, where he spent the first two years of his career. He appeared in 138 career games, posting just 6.9 points on 45.5/27.7/74.0 shooting splits.
Perhaps it was a microcosm of the competition or talent discrepancy (or both), but Christopher was far more bought in defensively this summer than he has been throughout his young career. We’ll see if that sticks in either a limited role with the Heat, or over a full season in Sioux Falls, where it struggled defending at the point-of-attack last year.
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I think that scout is right.
Miami needs players like Cain, Martin, Highsmith, and players like Dunc and Strus.
No need to say, that Christopher is not a pure shooter, and has to be a replacement for Cain and Martin. In other words, he must be a 3 and D wing, to stay with the Heat and have a chance in NBA.
but isnt that a bit contradicting tho? i mean, if he’s not a good shooter, then why must he be a ‘3-and-d’ guy? i reckon, as the name implies, ‘3-and-d’ guys should be good at 3pt shooting no?
Yeah, it is. As I understand it, a 3 and D guy is a player, which could defend, and can shoot from distance with solid % at low rate.
“He needs to accept he’s a 3 and D guy” –> why box him tho?
“He appeared in 138 career games, posting just 6.9 points” –> 6.9 points is decent for a rookie tho. jimmy butler averaged just 2.6 pts as a 22 yr old rookie for the bulls.
Exactly! The kid was 19 or 20 years old and undisciplined at the time. He has off the charts athleticism and was always able to score. He obviously improved his 3 point shooting and defense. No need to put a ceiling on him.
Is it a ceiling or a criteria for him to get playing time?
All I’m saying is, sure, if working hard at being a 3 and D guy gets him some playing time, great. I just think he ultimately can be a lot more.